What kind of bar makes you feel like you're underage when you aren't and have a 100% valid driver's license to prove it?

Our server refused to accept my Minnesota driver's license. I suggested they scan it, but the server said they didn't have one, which I later found out to be false. The server also refused to acknowledge that my other forms of ID (credit card, school ID, etc) matched my driver's license. It seemed as though the server was just set on not serving my party and I.

Minnesota licenses are made out of a rubber-like compound, which may arouse some suspicion, but seriously at least try to verify my ID in some objective manner. He also stated that because my party had licenses from different states (we are students), "clearly" that meant all of our IDs were fake.

My experience at Kelly's was quite upsetting.

AVOID if you have an out-of-state or international ID--they only trust Pennsylvania driver's licenses!

If you're an architecture fan, all the more reason to hit up Kelly's. The art deco design is a great example of the style, in minimalist form. It also feels permeated by an old-time-Pittsburgh feel. Selection is quite good. Head Hunter IPA on-tap, when I was there. Happy hour prices are good. Service is attentive. As an after work spot, this may be very different than a typical late night or weekend thing. With that in mind, I'd definitely hit this place up, just not at 5 when all the office-folk are getting out.

I'll admit, I probably went on a good night. And I got super drunk. But I had a ball. The set is probably aged 25-35. A mix of local, European tourist (?), and hipster. Not exactly a typical go-to for the New England bro.

As a CMU student I don't typically stray from the Shadyside/Oakland haunts for a typical night of debauchery - Will Penn, Doc's/Marios, Peter's, etc. Well, I'm glad I did: this place is solid.

There was a DJ bumping some low-key 80s infused house music (think Blue Monday) and there was a very lively crowd on this weeknight. The bar was packed (but not crowded), people were friendly, and the bartender was an absolute pro. The dude knew a ton about mixology and cocktails if you're into that. The menu is full of innovative mixed drinks and classics as well.

As far as beer goes, I think anyone from the area would be impressed. There were like a dozen taps and they weren't typical. They featured a handful of brews from Church Brew Works and East End brewery. This place had Gratitude on tap... There were plenty of bottles around too but I didn't get that far.

Overall, I couldn't have been more impressed. It's sort of unassuming in a low key but undeniably gentrifying neighborhood: East Liberty. As far as the college set goes this is a well-kept secret: reasonably priced, a good selection, and top-notch service.

Stopped in a couple of days ago, upset that I missed the Barleywine festival but happy to grab a pint at kelly's. Decent atmosphere, older building kept up pretty well, nice music selection, hard to guess what is coming...Asia is always a surprise.The selection is a bit lacking but the quality of the selection is very nice, a couple of the local East Ends on tap. Food selection was limited but pretty decent, and pretty good prices for a downtown spot. Taste wasn't too bad, but again, nothing to write home about. Overall, definitely a place to check out, but not at the top of my list.

Kelly's has long been a stand-by -- not a place that I immediately jump at, but when I'm reminded of it I get a smile on my face. Kelly's almost always satisfies.

The atmosphere, described in previous reviews, hasn't changed much, with one notable exception -- since the last review, it's become smoke free, a BIG plus in my book. The smokiness used to be the one major drawback to going there, so I consider it much improved. Love the 50's diner feel, and the patio out back is great in the summer months. It's easy to take your time, lounge around, & really stretch out & enjoy the evening.

I really like the beer selection. Even though the variety is exceeded by far in other bars, I appreciate a tight, quality beer menu (about 12 drafts, 40-50 bottles, roughly 10 of which rotate). This might sound crazy, but sometimes I get overwhelmed poring over an extensive menu. Like the taps at Kazansky's in Squirrel & pre-expansion D's, it's nice to see a tidy beer list with a lot of care put into selection. That said, I've always found something new & exciting every time I've gone (how often do you see Cantillon Kriek on ANY list?). Their cocktail menu is sweet too, if not everyone in your party is a beer geek.

The food's good, again not a huge list, but well done -- love the Shrimp Po Boy, fish tacos, & sweet potato fries.

Hipsters, schmipsters -- you don't bother them, they don't bother you, & out of the "hipster bars" in the area, I find Kelly's to be pretty sideways-glance-free. The jukebox is awesome, too, though if I do have one criticism about the place it's that the music is sometimes too loud (moan, wheeze, kvetch, I know). They used to have DJ's fairly frequently , spinning fun & retro goodies, but not sure if that still happens.

In summation, like I said before: Kelly's is not usually on my short list, but I rarely turn it down.

Kelly's is a fun place located on the Penn Circle in the rapidly revitalizing area of East Liberty near Shadyside. Go through the port-holed door and enter a bar that's like a 50s diner meets dive bar, but with good results.

Beer selection focuses on quality, with 12 taps that rotate frequently and no macros. You can always find East End beers on tap, and usually more than one. Bottle selection again focuses on quality, not a lot, but its mostly all good.

Apparently most of the service staff was turned over several months ago. The current staff in my experience has been friendly and attentive.

The clientèle is a mix of hipster, punk rock, and yuppie, with an eclectic selection of music being played (you're equally likely to hear The Smiths, Stevie Wonder, The Carter Family, or Slayer). Its a fun vibe but I usually end up feeling old and unhip. It can also get loud and smoky at times, so be warned. If I were 10 years younger and single, Id probably hang out here all the time. Evenso, its still a fun place to stop by for some great beer and atmosphere.

This was the first pub of the night on a pub crawl with my gracious host. The atmosphere here is very cool, diner-chic, 50's in feel, heavily smokey, but quite OK. Quality of my beer was very good, and the service was friendly, but very slow, which is OK by me. Selection was good with some local micros, a few macros, and quite a few imports, a nice bottle list as well. East End IPA was damn good on tap. A nice hipster, locals bar that is definately worth checking out if you are in this part of town. Very close to the Sharp Edge too. Another bonus. A cool PITT bar.

Atmosphere is ok, a nice blend of a beer pub feel with more than a bit of youthful enthusiasm(my bartender had numerous facial piercings). Selection is pretty good, this place always seems to have a nice belgian on tap, and I had Black Ocean here. The only real drawback to this place is that it serves hard liquor, so there are some poor souls here that haven't seen the light yet. Food seems to be about what you would expect from a bar. Deep fried, salty, and sure to make you thirsty. No IPA on tap tonight, which stinks. Staff seems fairly knowledgeable about the beers they have, and they are quick with a sample of whatever you want to try. Not a bad place to go when my regular spot is too crowded.

I need to frequent Kelly's more often. I usually only end up there on Punk Rock Night, but it is only a few blocks from my house and they always have great beer on draft and the selection rotates frequently. They don't have the biggest selection in town, but they always seem to have interesting stuff.

Megan F has been waiting the tables everytime I've been there. She definitely know all about beer and is able to make suggestions and recommendations.

I know this isn't cocktailadvocate.com, but the cocktails are pretty great there.

This place honestly blew me away, I'm still in shock that they carried the quality beers that they did. Sort of a hole in the wall, when we drove by while looking for parking I didn't even notice it. When you walk in you can tell this place used to be a diner, and I guess a couple doctors and a lawyer renovated and turned it into an evening hangout to spread their love of beer, opens up at 4 so no lunch going down here. When you walk in dim lights and some punk going on put according to the bartender they have funk and soul night with a live dj, and a more indie rock inspired night of the week as well. Service a couple bartenders, females with tatoos and piercings galore serving up such beers as 90 minute IPA, Lunacy, BROTH scotch ale, Prima, and Old Ho right there I was amazed. Then bottle selection they had recently sold out of the Three Philosophers and they had a specialty beer from Achel that I got to have a taste of. Amen, for this underground gem of a beer bar. Hear the food is tasty and when I was walking out of the bathroom the waitress was passing me with a serving tray full of aromatic bar food I wanted to follow her to table and beg for some food, well anyway I didn't eat maybe next time.

Update, stopped in yesterday afternoon around 4 when they open and tasted a couple fine brews from Heavyweight and got to see their small but quality menu. My buddy Bart and I split some potstickers and each had a salad with all green leaf lettuce no Iceberg sprinkled with craisins, walnuts, goat cheese, and chicken topped with some Vinegarette very good salad. More praises to the small little underground beer bar, Megan the bartender was cool as hell and her and her hubby spin funk, jazz, and soul on Tuesday nights. Monday they were playing some cool low key reggae, however I have been there on the punk nights a different establishment all around.

This bar is basically in the artist neighborhood of Shadyside, and this is the clientele that this bar serves to. Walking in it looked like a bar setup from the past. The bar itself has about a dozen stools and booths off to the side.

The quality and selection of beers is very good. Kelly's has 12 draft selections, which include: two Rogue beers, Yards, two Victory, two Heavyweights, and some common imports. The worst beers on tap were Yuengling and Guinness. They also had a good bottle selection with Penn and Ommegang to name a few breweries represented.

Overall this is a very good bar. It is a nice place to get away from your everyday sports bar. However, Kellys is a night bar only.

Atmosphere: Kelly's Bar certainly doesn't look like a craft beer bar; The 50's neon sign and door with porthole make the place look like another dive bar. However, nothing could be further from the truth, and in fact the retro nature of the bar adds to the charm. Inside, the bar features reddish-pink walls, pink neon lighting, white column lighting, and a jukebox playing lounge jazz. This is definitely one of the more unique bars that I've been to. The clientele includes the artistic types from Shadyside, so it's not a very loud and rowdy place, which is a nice change of pace.

Quality/Selection: Kelly's features 12 taps, with Yuengling and Guinness being the most macro-ish. The remainder are all micros or imports, with Heavyweight (including the Broth Scotch Ale OneTimeOnePlace), Victory, Yards featured. The bottle cooler contained interesting bottles including Victory, Penn, an Achelse Kluis, and the first place that we'd seen Three Philosophers in the Pittsburgh area.

Service: The service seemed to be reasonable, and the prices were quite good; our Broths cost only 4 dollars each.

We'd tried to make it here a few times, but the bar didn't open until later, so wasn't until yesterday that we could actually sample the place. It was worth the wait, though, as Kelly's was a unique experience, with a charm all its own, and this is certainly a place I'd go back to again, especially since it sits right on the trip between the Church and D's.